November 17, 2025 • 8 mins
Explore the thrilling story of David Klingler, Houston Cougars quarterback, who set the NCAA football world ablaze on November 17, 1990, with an unbreakable record of 11 touchdown passes in a single game. This episode dives into Klingler’s rise, the electric atmosphere in the Astrodome, his incredible performance against Eastern Washington, and the legacy of a game that changed college football history. Featuring deep research, vivid storytelling, and key stats, this episode delivers everything sports history enthusiasts need to know about one of the greatest passing performances ever.
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Email: dailysportshistory@gmail.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
On November seventeenth, nineteen ninety, David Kingler, the quarterback for
Houston University, did something that has never been done before
or since. He came out on fire against Eastern Washington
and through eleven touchdowns to eight different players, breaking the
(00:21):
record to the most touchdowns in a single game and
capping one of the statistically greatest seasons by a quarterback
in college football history. Join us today as we dive
into this historic game today on Daily Sports History. Welcome
(00:43):
to Daily Sports History. I'm Eanthon Rees your guide because
it took me over ten years of backgard football to
throw eleven touchdowns. So David Kingler was born into a
sports loving family. Now he grew up mostly in Ohio,
but he did make his way back to Texas where
(01:06):
he attended Stratford High School in Houston, and his high
schools was a wishbone team he was playing on. He
was the quarterback. He got to pass the ball about
five times a game, and he would pass the ball
as far as he could. But it wasn't the emphasis.
This happened a lot back in the eighties and nineties,
where high schools were very simple with the wishbone offense.
(01:27):
It was very easy to run no matter who your
linemen were, and a lot of times talent got buried.
But he was able to catch the eye of a
scout from Houston who saw his raw arm strength and
actually got a scholarship offer into one of the most
past happy offenses in the country, and he would go on,
as they would tell him, he reminded them of Jim Kelly,
(01:50):
who was at the top of his game at the time,
and their run into offense was insane at the time.
Andre would go on in this offense to win the
Heisman Trophy at Houston, who was not known as a
power football conference and who was his backup when andre
Ware won the Heisman It was David Kingler in nineteen
(02:12):
eighty nine, and since he was behind Heisman Trophy winner
for the first couple of seasons, he didn't get to
play a whole lot, but he was learning and getting
even more reps in practice learning the system. So when
andre Ware went on to the NFL, David Kingler fit
right in and instantly kept Houston in the national spotlight
because in nineteen ninety David Kingler officially took over the
(02:35):
reins from andre Ware and he led Houston to a
ten and one record that season, where he would amass
over fifty one hundred passing yards and fifty four touchdowns,
finishing fifth in the Heisman despite the fact that Houston
was under penalties and sanctions from the NCAA and couldn't
even participate in bowl games. But there was one game
(02:59):
this season that was unlike any other. It happened on
November seventeenth, nineteen ninety when they faced off against Eastern Washington,
who just happened to be the wrong team at the
wrong time. See, Eastern Washington was coming to play Houston,
who was playing at the time at the Houston Astrodome,
one of the most iconic indoor stadiums ever, and it
(03:19):
meant that it was a fast turf and it was
unusual for other teams because it was astro turf where
not a lot of teams got to play on that.
So they had an instant advantage with whoever they played.
And unfortunately for Eastern Washington, Houston had just played Texas
the week before, who beat them, knocking them out to
the chance to have a perfect season. So it was
(03:41):
their first loss of the season. They come in and
they want revenge. They want to show that they are
still a dominant team. They ranked twelfth in the nation
at the time, and Eastern Washington was not a power school.
There are a smaller school right now. They are and
in the FCS, which at the time was Division two
A and a much weaker opponent. They don't have as
many scholarships, They don't have as many top tier talent
(04:04):
as Houston was becoming a great school for football, as
they just had the Heisman Trophy winner the year before,
and David came out slinging. He put together in the
first quarter almost a perfect game, going thirteen for fourteen,
guiding Houston on touchdown drives on their first six possessions,
(04:24):
and by the time it was halftime, the game looked
like a blowout forty two to fourteen. But he wasn't
done yet. He had great receivers helping him out, Chuck
Weatherspoon and Manny Hernandez, who each caught two touchdowns, John
Brown and Tracy Good each caught a touchdown themselves, and
he was in constant rhythm. The Astrodome was in all
(04:45):
of what he was doing. In the second half, he
came out put together even more, including a forty yard
touchdown to Verlin Brown and to back touchdowns of eight
and seven yards to Patrick Cooper spreading it around, and
by the third quarter he had already tied the rect
for the most touchdown passes in a game in n
C double history with nine, who was done by Danish
(05:06):
Shot in nineteen sixty nine. And they would throw another
eight yard touchdown pass to ty Andre Sanders to get
him the record at ten. But he wasn't done yet.
Kingler continued to go and scored one more touchdown before
the game was over. He threw a fifty one yard
touchdown pass to Marcus Grant, giving him eleven touchdowns. He
(05:27):
would finish the game with eleven touchdowns, completing forty one
of his fifty eight pass attempts for five hundred and
seventy two yards, winning the game eighty four to twenty one.
And many thought you were just running up the score,
but John Jenkins, the coach of the time for Houston,
was unapologetic about running up the score because at the time,
that's how you got higher in the rankings. That's how
(05:50):
you showed your worth is you beat up on these teams.
You didn't cut loose, and it gave Kingler the chance
to do something no one had ever done before, and
it cemented himself in the history of the NCUBLEA, a
record that still stands to this day. Eleven touchdowns has
never been thrown in a game since this has happened.
He would also go on that year to break the
(06:11):
record for the most touchdown passes in a season at
fifty four, which would last for sixteen years. And he
wasn't done breaking records. Later that season, he would go
on to face Arizona State and throw for a record
seven hundred and sixteen yards in one game, showing he
was one of the most productive quarterbacks in college football history.
(06:34):
This season, although he didn't get to have a chance
to play for a national championship, be in a playoff,
or play in a bowl game because of the sanctions,
but he did elevate Houston, showing that they weren't just
Andre Wear's team, they were building something and he would
finish his career with Houston with nine thousand and four
hundred yards and ninety one touchdowns, which is still on
(06:56):
the top in NCAA history. Now. His following season, his
senior year, he would have a quality season, but nowhere
close to US as successful as his previous He would
throw for over three thousand yards and twenty nine touchdowns
as the team struggled to stay relevant after all their
sanctions and struggled to recruit, and so his college career
(07:16):
on a down note. But he would be a first
round draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in nineteen ninety two,
but at that time, the Cincinnati was not known for
their quarterback play. He'd be the sixth pick overall by
the Cincinnati Bengals and go on to play there for
three years, but would struggle mightily with them. He had injuries,
lots of coaching changes, and wasn't able to grow like
(07:37):
he did in college. And his playing style was one
that was successful at the time, very similar to a
Brett Favre, but he just didn't have as much success
and he would throw many turnovers throughout his career and
finish his NFL career after a stint with the Oakland
Raiders and even the Green Bay Packers. He would go
on to retire throwing more interceptions and touchdow and having
(08:01):
a passer rating of sixty five. But the great thing
is if you dominate in college, you are a hero
at that college forever and Houston will go on to
retire his number seven jersey and he's still a legend
in Houston to this day. So you don't always know
when you peak, but when you do, go for it all,
just like David Kingler did. If you don't know when
(08:22):
you'll get the chance to do it again. I want
to thank you for listening Today's Daily Sports History. If
you like this, please make sure you follow us wherever
you're listening. That way, you don't miss an episode, because
we got another one coming for you tomorrow and we'll
see you on the next one.
On November seventeenth, nineteen ninety, David Kingler, the quarterback for
Houston University, did something that has never been done before
or since. He came out on fire against Eastern Washington
and through eleven touchdowns to eight different players, breaking the
(00:21):
record to the most touchdowns in a single game and
capping one of the statistically greatest seasons by a quarterback
in college football history. Join us today as we dive
into this historic game today on Daily Sports History. Welcome
(00:43):
to Daily Sports History. I'm Eanthon Rees your guide because
it took me over ten years of backgard football to
throw eleven touchdowns. So David Kingler was born into a
sports loving family. Now he grew up mostly in Ohio,
but he did make his way back to Texas where
(01:06):
he attended Stratford High School in Houston, and his high
schools was a wishbone team he was playing on. He
was the quarterback. He got to pass the ball about
five times a game, and he would pass the ball
as far as he could. But it wasn't the emphasis.
This happened a lot back in the eighties and nineties,
where high schools were very simple with the wishbone offense.
(01:27):
It was very easy to run no matter who your
linemen were, and a lot of times talent got buried.
But he was able to catch the eye of a
scout from Houston who saw his raw arm strength and
actually got a scholarship offer into one of the most
past happy offenses in the country, and he would go on,
as they would tell him, he reminded them of Jim Kelly,
(01:50):
who was at the top of his game at the time,
and their run into offense was insane at the time.
Andre would go on in this offense to win the
Heisman Trophy at Houston, who was not known as a
power football conference and who was his backup when andre
Ware won the Heisman It was David Kingler in nineteen
(02:12):
eighty nine, and since he was behind Heisman Trophy winner
for the first couple of seasons, he didn't get to
play a whole lot, but he was learning and getting
even more reps in practice learning the system. So when
andre Ware went on to the NFL, David Kingler fit
right in and instantly kept Houston in the national spotlight
because in nineteen ninety David Kingler officially took over the
(02:35):
reins from andre Ware and he led Houston to a
ten and one record that season, where he would amass
over fifty one hundred passing yards and fifty four touchdowns,
finishing fifth in the Heisman despite the fact that Houston
was under penalties and sanctions from the NCAA and couldn't
even participate in bowl games. But there was one game
(02:59):
this season that was unlike any other. It happened on
November seventeenth, nineteen ninety when they faced off against Eastern Washington,
who just happened to be the wrong team at the
wrong time. See, Eastern Washington was coming to play Houston,
who was playing at the time at the Houston Astrodome,
one of the most iconic indoor stadiums ever, and it
(03:19):
meant that it was a fast turf and it was
unusual for other teams because it was astro turf where
not a lot of teams got to play on that.
So they had an instant advantage with whoever they played.
And unfortunately for Eastern Washington, Houston had just played Texas
the week before, who beat them, knocking them out to
the chance to have a perfect season. So it was
(03:41):
their first loss of the season. They come in and
they want revenge. They want to show that they are
still a dominant team. They ranked twelfth in the nation
at the time, and Eastern Washington was not a power school.
There are a smaller school right now. They are and
in the FCS, which at the time was Division two
A and a much weaker opponent. They don't have as
many scholarships, They don't have as many top tier talent
(04:04):
as Houston was becoming a great school for football, as
they just had the Heisman Trophy winner the year before,
and David came out slinging. He put together in the
first quarter almost a perfect game, going thirteen for fourteen,
guiding Houston on touchdown drives on their first six possessions,
(04:24):
and by the time it was halftime, the game looked
like a blowout forty two to fourteen. But he wasn't
done yet. He had great receivers helping him out, Chuck
Weatherspoon and Manny Hernandez, who each caught two touchdowns, John
Brown and Tracy Good each caught a touchdown themselves, and
he was in constant rhythm. The Astrodome was in all
(04:45):
of what he was doing. In the second half, he
came out put together even more, including a forty yard
touchdown to Verlin Brown and to back touchdowns of eight
and seven yards to Patrick Cooper spreading it around, and
by the third quarter he had already tied the rect
for the most touchdown passes in a game in n
C double history with nine, who was done by Danish
(05:06):
Shot in nineteen sixty nine. And they would throw another
eight yard touchdown pass to ty Andre Sanders to get
him the record at ten. But he wasn't done yet.
Kingler continued to go and scored one more touchdown before
the game was over. He threw a fifty one yard
touchdown pass to Marcus Grant, giving him eleven touchdowns. He
(05:27):
would finish the game with eleven touchdowns, completing forty one
of his fifty eight pass attempts for five hundred and
seventy two yards, winning the game eighty four to twenty one.
And many thought you were just running up the score,
but John Jenkins, the coach of the time for Houston,
was unapologetic about running up the score because at the time,
that's how you got higher in the rankings. That's how
(05:50):
you showed your worth is you beat up on these teams.
You didn't cut loose, and it gave Kingler the chance
to do something no one had ever done before, and
it cemented himself in the history of the NCUBLEA, a
record that still stands to this day. Eleven touchdowns has
never been thrown in a game since this has happened.
He would also go on that year to break the
(06:11):
record for the most touchdown passes in a season at
fifty four, which would last for sixteen years. And he
wasn't done breaking records. Later that season, he would go
on to face Arizona State and throw for a record
seven hundred and sixteen yards in one game, showing he
was one of the most productive quarterbacks in college football history.
(06:34):
This season, although he didn't get to have a chance
to play for a national championship, be in a playoff,
or play in a bowl game because of the sanctions,
but he did elevate Houston, showing that they weren't just
Andre Wear's team, they were building something and he would
finish his career with Houston with nine thousand and four
hundred yards and ninety one touchdowns, which is still on
(06:56):
the top in NCAA history. Now. His following season, his
senior year, he would have a quality season, but nowhere
close to US as successful as his previous He would
throw for over three thousand yards and twenty nine touchdowns
as the team struggled to stay relevant after all their
sanctions and struggled to recruit, and so his college career
(07:16):
on a down note. But he would be a first
round draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in nineteen ninety two,
but at that time, the Cincinnati was not known for
their quarterback play. He'd be the sixth pick overall by
the Cincinnati Bengals and go on to play there for
three years, but would struggle mightily with them. He had injuries,
lots of coaching changes, and wasn't able to grow like
(07:37):
he did in college. And his playing style was one
that was successful at the time, very similar to a
Brett Favre, but he just didn't have as much success
and he would throw many turnovers throughout his career and
finish his NFL career after a stint with the Oakland
Raiders and even the Green Bay Packers. He would go
on to retire throwing more interceptions and touchdow and having
(08:01):
a passer rating of sixty five. But the great thing
is if you dominate in college, you are a hero
at that college forever and Houston will go on to
retire his number seven jersey and he's still a legend
in Houston to this day. So you don't always know
when you peak, but when you do, go for it all,
just like David Kingler did. If you don't know when
(08:22):
you'll get the chance to do it again. I want
to thank you for listening Today's Daily Sports History. If
you like this, please make sure you follow us wherever
you're listening. That way, you don't miss an episode, because
we got another one coming for you tomorrow and we'll
see you on the next one.
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